Kevin Pillar to Sox for 1 year, 4.25 million

DeadlySplitter

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Let's start this thread officially now.

View: https://twitter.com/ChrisCotillo/status/1228042995011813378?s=19

https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/p/pillake01.shtml
Pillar is going to be the 4th OF, minor league signing Cesar Puello moves to "deep" AAA depth if he sticks around. Verdugo's back is uncertain for the early season so you could see this guy on Opening Day in CF, JBJ in RF or vice versa. He hits for a bit of power (21 HR last year with the likely juiced ball, but 15/16 HR prior two years as well), but is Eduardo Nunez like in taking walks with a .296 career OBP, leading to a career .701 OPS (86 OPS+). last year was the best of his career by OPS but was all in the slugging (293/442/735) and isn't very projectionable, again, due to the juiced ball.

here's concerns his stellar defense has become average (he turned 31 on January 4). add it up and he's been a 1 WAR/yr player recently, hence the price tag.
 

TFisNEXT

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His name always struck me as a follow up to "my name isn't Kevin Millar".
Certainly doesn't have the batting skills of Kevin Millar.

If they can keep him away from right handed pitching for most of the year though, then he should still be a solid 4th outfielder.
 

DJnVa

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He's perfectly cromulent as 4th OF or platoon with JBJ.
 

Minneapolis Millers

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I hope $4M is only if he hits incentives. Otherwise, seems $1-2M more than other comparable, leftover veteran guys are getting. More than Two-bags, for example...
 

TFisNEXT

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He's perfectly cromulent as 4th OF or platoon with JBJ.
Yeah I'll take a guy who has a career OPS+ of 118 against lefties and can play all 3 OF positions competently. Especially given that the 3 projected starting outfielders are all lefties. JBJ being the most obvious weakness against LHP as you noted above.
 

TFisNEXT

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I hope $4M is only if he hits incentives. Otherwise, seems $1-2M more than other comparable, leftover veteran guys are getting. More than Two-bags, for example...
Pillar is probably a better player than Mitchy Two-Bags. Different style though...most of Pillar's value is in his defense, positional versatility, and base running while being negative with the bat. Though if they can limit him to mostly LHP, then the bat should be ok.
 

Trlicek's Whip

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The 20-HR power's a mirage and probably why he was slightly more expensive. All his HR's were to left field so here's hoping he settle for being a doubles machine in Fenway against lefties. Hopefully the speed disappears after 2020 and he can still roam the OF. My only intangibles quibble is the aggressively & tightly 'scaped beard:

download.jpg
 

DeweyWins

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If we end up as sellers and Pillar has turned back the clock enough that we trade him, we have an expensive (for this last year only) AAAA+ outfielder stuck in AAA in Rusney Castillo.

With no offense to Rusney, I hope we get stuck with winning.
 

mauidano

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So theoretically this move cost $6MM? Because Verdugo is injured already, we had to spend the cash on Pillar as insurance. Sounds to me like the gift that keeps on giving of catching the shaft on the Mookie/Price deal.
 

E5 Yaz

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So theoretically this move cost $6MM? Because Verdugo is injured already, we had to spend the cash on Pillar as insurance.
No, it's because they need a RH hitter fourth outfielder to plug in to give one of the three LH starters a day off
 

tims4wins

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So theoretically this move cost $6MM? Because Verdugo is injured already, we had to spend the cash on Pillar as insurance. Sounds to me like the gift that keeps on giving of catching the shaft on the Mookie/Price deal.
This place is out of control right now with the bad takes on the Mookie trade.
 

Cesar Crespo

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I don't get a lot of the signings this year. It's not like they are expensive signings but they aren't "go cheap" options either. I guess it doesn't matter now that they are under the cap. Plus it's kind of the byproduct of not having options on the farm.
 

Ale Xander

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It's a shame Duran and Sturgeon are also left-handed. Obviously Matheny isn't a ML hitter. In any case, why isn't Sturgeon on the ST roster? And who would have been the other in-house options?

I'd still preferred to save the cash and go with a minimum salary bench OF'er, ideally someone even faster than Pillar who can PR. But it seems they may not have someone.
 

YTF

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It's a shame Duran and Sturgeon are also left-handed. Obviously Matheny isn't a ML hitter. In any case, why isn't Sturgeon on the ST roster? And who would have been the other in-house options?

I'd still preferred to save the cash and go with a minimum salary bench OF'er, ideally someone even faster than Pillar who can PR. But it seems they may not have someone.
Unless you've got a guy on the farm who is ready, a minimum salary guy is a minimum salary guy for a reason. At least three of your 4 outfielders have decent speed and most days one is likely to be available to PR. I'm not sure why you would waste a bench spot,
 

Cesar Crespo

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It's a shame Duran and Sturgeon are also left-handed. Obviously Matheny isn't a ML hitter. In any case, why isn't Sturgeon on the ST roster? And who would have been the other in-house options?

I'd still preferred to save the cash and go with a minimum salary bench OF'er, ideally someone even faster than Pillar who can PR. But it seems they may not have someone.
It seems like semantics but it isn't. Duran is not left handed. He is right handed and bats left handed. While this probably won't matter, Duran has experience at 2nd and 3rd base.

edit: Although with Downs now on the team, the chance of Duran returning to 2b are even smaller. I guess there's a possibility Duran could end up being a utility player at 2b/3b/OF but probably just a 4th OF. I don't see him ending up as a regular.
 
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Cesar Crespo

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Also I feel the need to mention this guy Marcus Wilson . I'm not convinced Duran is that much better of a prospect or closer to the majors. Only 21 days older too. I'm assuming when talking about guys like Duran and Wilson people are talking more about next year too. They needed a bridge guy.
 

scottyno

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Perfect fit for an outfield with 3 lefties, he should be playing every game vs LHPs and gives them the flexibility to trade JBJ (or maybe AB) for pitching midseason if they're in the mix without getting significantly worse
 

nvalvo

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Pillar isn't a good player. His defense graded out amazingly in 2016, but has declined towards or hovered around average since, depending on which stat you trust.

His OBP is under .300, although he has some pop.

But for a bench role where he'll cover rest days for our three lefty outfielders and hopefully see 70+% of his PAs against LHP, he should be perfectly respectable, and the price is fine.

If Tzu-Wei Lin batted from the right side, he'd get this roster spot instead. But he doesn't, so we need Pillar.
 

DennyDoyle'sBoil

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He will take over the Nunez swing at everything role.

You know what they say. You don’t walk your way out of West Hills.
 

Savin Hillbilly

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The wrong side of the bridge....
But for a bench role where he'll cover rest days for our three lefty outfielders and hopefully see 70+% of his PAs against LHP, he should be perfectly respectable, and the price is fine.
This. He'd be a low-grade starter, but he's a more than adequate 4th OF. He can play all three OF positions with at least fringe-average D in CF, and he's not entirely useless at the plate. That's all I think it's reasonable to ask from that role.

If Tzu-Wei Lin batted from the right side, he'd get this roster spot instead. But he doesn't, so we need Pillar.
Lin's still in the running for a bench role, though, right? So far the bench is Plawecki, Peraza, PIllar. Unless Lin is disqualified for lacking a last name that starts with P, it seems like he might have a shot. Ideally, I would round out that trio with a corner guy with some HR power, but the only likely candidate of that type seems to be Dalbec, and I assume that for multiple reasons they'll keep him Pawtucket to start the year.
 

Cesar Crespo

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This. He'd be a low-grade starter, but he's a more than adequate 4th OF. He can play all three OF positions with at least fringe-average D in CF, and he's not entirely useless at the plate. That's all I think it's reasonable to ask from that role.



Lin's still in the running for a bench role, though, right? So far the bench is Plawecki, Peraza, PIllar. Unless Lin is disqualified for lacking a last name that starts with P, it seems like he might have a shot. Ideally, I would round out that trio with a corner guy with some HR power, but the only likely candidate of that type seems to be Dalbec, and I assume that for multiple reasons they'll keep him Pawtucket to start the year.
I think people keep forgetting the roster is now 26 instead of 25. I'd have to think he's in the running.
 

chawson

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Lin's still in the running for a bench role, though, right? So far the bench is Plawecki, Peraza, PIllar. Unless Lin is disqualified for lacking a last name that starts with P, it seems like he might have a shot. Ideally, I would round out that trio with a corner guy with some HR power, but the only likely candidate of that type seems to be Dalbec, and I assume that for multiple reasons they'll keep him Pawtucket to start the year.
I think Arauz has to stay on the 26-man roster all year as well per Rule V rules, though he would have options next year.

I’d be kinda shocked if Peraza, Lin, Arauz and Chavis all finished the year in Boston.
 
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Mighty Joe Young

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I suppose Pillar is adequate as a 4th OF .. and he always leads the league in showboat fake diving catches per 162 .. so that’s something

I don’t mean to harp on this but it used to drive me crazy watching BJ games .. you’ll see ..